New Empires and Kingdoms

1. State whether true or false:

(a) Harishena composed a prashasti in praise of Gautamiputra Shri Satakarni.

(b) The rulers of Aryavarta brought tribute for Samudragupta.

(c) There were twelve rulers in Dakshinapatha

(d) Taxila and Madurai were important centres under the control of the Gupta rulers.

(e) Aihole was the capital of the Pallavas.

(f) Local assemblies functioned for several centuries in south India.

2. Mention 3 authors who wrote about Harshavardhana.

3. What changes do you find in the army of this time?

4. What were the new administrative arrangements in this period?

5. What do you think Arvind would have to do if he was acting as Samudragupta?

6. Do you think ordinary people would have read and understood the prashastis? Give reasons
for your answer.

8. How do you think wars affect the lives of ordinary people today?

1.) Fill in the blanks (1*10 =10)

a.) Kumari Devi was the grandmother of ——-

b.) Harsh over dinner rule about —— years
C.) _____ wrote Abhijnana Shakuntalam.
D.) _____ was the Chinese Pilgrim.
E.) Chandragupta adopt the title of ______.
F.) Chandragupta 2 assumed the title of _______.
G.) Samudra gupta’s Grandfather and grandmother are mentioned as _____.
h.) Samudra Gupta from along inscription inscribed on the ashokan pillar at ______.

2.) Write true and false (1*10 = 10)

a.) Aihole was a important centre of trade –
b.) The pallavas and chalukyas most important rolling dynasties in South India-
c.) Known chalukya Ruler was Pallavas –
d.) Aryabhatta was an astronomer –
e.) Ashokan Pillar is at Allahabad –

3.) Write short question and answers (2*5 = 10)

a.) Who was Harishena

B.) Name the two ruling dynasties in South India?
C.) Who was best known chalukya ruler
D.) Name the religion introduced by Prophet Muhammad
E.) who was Harshavardhana court poet?

4.) Long question answers (10*2 = 20)

a.) What changes brought in kingdom administration during this time?

b.) What changes had been brought in the army?
Solution 2: The 3 authors were. 1. Banabhatta 2. Xuan Zang 3. Ravikirti

Solution 3: Like earlier rulers, some of these kings maintained a well-organised army, with elephants,
chariots, cavalry and foot soldiers. Besides, there were military leaders who provided the king with troops
whenever they needed them. They were not paid regular salaries. Instead, some of them received grants

Solution 4: 1. Administrative posts turned out to be hereditary 2. On some occasions, one man had
multiple posts.

Solution 5: Give importance to science, astronomy, music and art.

Solution 6: Ordinary people would not have read and understood the prashastis, since Sanskrit is not the
language of ordinary people.

Solution 8: 1. It affects the livelihood of people 2. It affects the trade and business 3. People may incur a
personal loss due to the loss of lives of near and dear ones and the loss of property

1.) Fill in the blanks (1*10 =10)

a.) Kumari Devi was the grandmother of samudra Gupta

b.) Harsh over during rule about 1400 years

C.) Kalidasa wrote Abhijnana Shakuntalam.

D.) Fa hien was the Chinese Pilgrim

E.) Chandragupta adopt the title of Maharajadhiraja

F.) Chandragupta 2 assumed the title of Vikramaditya

G.) Samudra gupta’s Grandfather and grandmother are mentioned as maharajahs

h.) Samudra Gupta from along inscription inscribed on the ashokan pillar at Allahabad

2.) Write true and false:

1.) Aihole was a important centre of trade –

Ans: false

2.) The pallavas and chalukyas most important rolling dynasties in South India-

Ans: true

3.) The best known chalukya Ruler was Pallavas –

Ans: false

4.) Aryabhatta was an astronomer –

Ans: true

5.) Ashokan Pillar is at Allahabad –

Ans: true

3.) Write short question and answers

a.) Who was Harishena

Ans: Harisena was a poet and a minister at the court of samudra Gupta.

B.) Name the two ruling dynasties in South India?

Ans: Pallavas and chalukyas

C.) Who was best known chalukya ruler

Ans: Pulakeshin Was well known chaLukas

D.) Name the religion introduced by Prophet Muhammad

Ans: Islam religion

E.) who was Harshavardhana court poet?

Ans: Banabhatta

4.) Long question answers

a.) What changes brought in kingdom administration during this time?

Ans: Earlier the king’s land revenue remained important for the rulers and the village remained the basic
unit of administration. There were some new developments where the king adopted a number of steps to
win the support of men who are powerful either economically or socially because of their political and
military strength. Some important administrative posts were now hereditary. This means that sons
succeed father’s to this post. Sometimes one person held many offices full show for instance besides
being a Maha danda nayaka Harishena was a Kumar Amartya meaning an important minister. Besides
the important man probably had a say in local administration these include nagara shreshthi or chief
banker or merchant of the city or the leader of the merchant caravans or the chief Craftsman and the
head of the scribes.

b.) What changes had been brought in the army?

Ans: Permanent army was well organised and was kept by the Ruler. Elephants, chariots, cavalry and
foot soldiers were used in battle grounds. Collect revenue from the land and this revenue was used to
maintain soldiers, horses, and provide equipment for warfare. These men came to be known as
samantas. Soldiers in the battlefield used different kinds of weapons Ike battle axes, arrow, spear and
other well equipped methods.